Operation Mindcrime II, Keeper of the Seven Keys III and now Land of the Free II. I guess Number of The Beast II is just around the corner. What is it with all the 80’s metal mega-monsters? We are not 14 anymore to fall into the trap. And unfortunately for these bands, today’s 14 year olds do not exactly appreciate old school metal. So, enough with recycling ideas and album titles. Now in terms of the album itself, as you can already presume, it sounds nothing like its ancestor.
I had to wait for nearly 26 minutes to hear something interesting in the sound of ‘Opportunity’ (9th song!!!!). And then, for crying out loud, somewhere in the middle of this song I hear the main theme of Maiden’s ‘Heaven Can Wait’. What the f**k? Oh boy, some highly respected bands are losing it I’m afraid. Feel free to draw your own conclusions about the album, I am not commenting any further. ‘Rain’, ‘Leaving Hell’, ‘Empress’ and ‘Real World’ (‘Real Helloween’ I would say) might act in favour of Gamma Ray. Nothing special.
| Track List | Line Up |
| 01. Into The Storm 02. From The Ashes 03. Rising Again 04. To Mother Earth 05. Rain 06. Leaving Hell 07. Empress 08. When The World 09. Opportunity 10. Real World 11. Hear Me Calling 12. Insurrection |
Kai Hansen: vocals, guitars Henjo Richter: guitars, keyboards Dirk Schlächter: bass Daniel Zimmermann: drums |